Find out about the different types of fostering

‘I’d love to provide support to a young family starting off’

‘I know how difficult the early days can be with a baby and how crucial support can be’

If this sounds like you, then read on to find out more about why we need more people to come forward and become Parent and Child foster carers.

Parent and child fostering is a specialist foster care arrangement where a mother, father or both parents and their baby or young child are supported within a fostering family. In some cases, there can be more than one baby or young child.

This type of fostering can be enormously rewarding for foster carers who support and mentor new parents, at the same time as ensuring the safety of the child. As parent and child fostering may be more complex, we do require one carer to be home based.

Why do we need people to become Parent and Child foster carers?

• To keep families together, whilst teaching the parent(s) new skills, providing a listening ear and nurturing their relationship.
• The goal of this specialist type of fostering is for you to care for a parent who really needs support, so they can build up the skills they need, both personally and for their child.

What do Parent and Child foster carers do?

Parent and child foster carers provide safe, supported and nurturing homes for those who have been identified as needing some additional help and support in learning to care for a new baby. As a Parent and Child Foster carer, you will need to:

• Monitor and support parenting provided to the baby / young child.
• Observe the parents’ interaction with their child, ensuring the child's needs are being met.
• Provide guidance to help the parent build confidence in caring for their child, such as feeding, bathing and responding to the child's needs.
• Model good parenting practices without taking over unless intervention is necessary for the child's safety.
• Assess the parent's abilities, document observations of the parents’ strengths and areas that need improving.
• Facilitate development of parenting skills.
• Keep records and communicate with professionals.

Why parents and their babies need foster care:

There are various reasons as to why a mother/father and baby and/or young child may be in care:

• Concerns over the parent’s care of the child, as they may need additional support from the foster carer(s) and social worker.
• Misuse of/withdrawing from drugs/alcohol.
• Parent has not co-operated with or has had difficulty with other forms of assessment, e.g. family centre, residential assessment centre.
• Parent has a learning disability.
• Parent is young – a teenager who needs to develop and demonstrate parenting skills.

In return, the scheme offers:

• Dedicated support from a fostering social worker and support workers.
• Access to our 24/7 out of hours telephone support service provided by our team
• Full initial and ongoing training, personalised to your needs
• Financial package

We run a number of information events if you want to find out more, please register your interest.